Difficulty Mode

The Devil May Cry franchise is notorious for its brutal difficulty. The main character usually starts out with half or less of his or her full HP bar and, with the exception of Devil May Cry 2, must unlock most of his or her combat abilities by buying them with Red Orbs or Proud Souls, which are gained from defeating enemies.

Overview
All games start the player on a "normal" difficulty, but, after fulfilling certain criteria, the player can opt to play through the story missions again on a higher difficulty. Enemies have more Vitality and deal more damage, making the main character seem weaker. In addition, enemy behavior is altered: lesser demons become more aggressive and less inclined to stand around taunting, bosses will utilize their special attacks more often, and some enemies will even gain access to a Devil Trigger.

The player is allowed to keep items and abilities gained from each playthrough when moving to a higher difficulty, with the exception of Automatic Mode in Devil May Cry.

Modes by Difficulty

 * Easy Mode - Bosses and enemies have less health and deal less damage than normal. This mode is only available from the start in Devil May Cry 4. In Devil May Cry and Devil May Cry 3, it must be unlocked by dying 3 times on Normal Mode.


 * Normal Mode - The default difficult setting for each game. Compared to other hack-and-slash games, Devil May Cry's "Normal Mode" is difficult.


 * Hard Mode - Bosses and enemies either deal more damage, or deal more damage and have higher vitality, depending on the game. This is unlocked after beating the game on Normal.


 * Very Hard Mode - Only available for Devil May Cry 3: Special Edition. Strength and vitality of enemies is increased even more than in Hard Mode.


 * Dante Must Die - All enemies gain access to Devil Trigger, which they enter after a set period of time has passed since the start of the fight. Strength and vitality for enemies is also increased.
 * Lucia Must Die - The same as Dante Must Die, but is applicable for Lucia in Devil May Cry 2
 * Vergil Must Die - The same as Dante Must Die, but is applicable for Vergil in Devil May Cry 3


 * Legendary Dark Knight - Only available for the PC version of Devil May Cry 4. The strength and vitality of enemies is comparable to those in Hard Mode, (called "Son of Sparda" in Devil May Cry 4,) but more of them spawn per encounter, and even additional enemies which are not originally present in that mission will spawn.

Additional Modes

 * Automatic Mode - Simplifies combos so that players can heedlessly mash buttons and still perform varied and stylish combos; however, there is no control over which combo is executed. This mode will also charge shots for the player while in combat, without the need to hold down the firearm button.


 * Heaven Or Hell - Everything, even the player, dies from one hit of any kind.


 * Hell And Hell - Only available in Devil May Cry 4. Enemies adopt the difficulty of Hard Mode, but the player still dies in one hit.

Devil May Cry
Devil May Cry is known for its unforgiving difficulty. There are four modes in total.


 * Easy Automatic - This difficulty is unlocked if you die in the first three missions. The game prompts you to switch to easy automatic mode or stay on Normal mode. Many things are different in this mode, including a simplified combat system, and some enemies won't even appear in this level (Frost, Fetish and Shadow). Dante himself can resist more attacks and performs better in combat. Unlike the harder modes, you cannot switch difficulty modes after completing the game, preventing you from unlocking anything.


 * Normal - This is the default mode and the first you will play when you start the game.
 * Lesser demons and bosses health: 100%
 * Lesser demons and bosses damage: 100%


 * Hard - Monsters are harder to kill in this mode. Dante is easier to kill and deals less damage. Completing it unlocks the Legendary Dark Knight costume.
 * Lesser demons and bosses health: 100%
 * Lesser demons and bosses damage: 250%


 * Dante Must Die - The hardest gameplay difficulty, Dante Must Die mode features a countdown that begins at the start of each fight. When the countdown reaches 0, all enemies left alive will Devil Trigger and become much more formidable. Additionally, enemies are harder to kill in general and Bosses are capable of killing Dante in a matter of 2~4 hits. Dante is much more vulnerable, though the gameplay commands remain somewhat the same as in Hard Mode. Completing this difficulty grants you the Super Dante costume, which bestows unlimited Devil Trigger.
 * Lesser demons and bosses health: 250%
 * Lesser demons and bosses damage: 250%

Devil May Cry 2

 * Normal - This is the default mode of the game. It resembles the Easy Automatic Mode of the first game wherein the combat is simplified and enemies and bosses are docile and easy to defeat. Enemies and Bosses also have simple and weak attacks.
 * Lesser demons and bosses health: 100%
 * Lesser demons and bosses damage: 100%


 * Hard - This difficulty mode is unlocked by beating Normal with both Dante and Lucia. Enemies get more health and are more hostile. Bosses also get more health and have better attacks. Tougher enemies appear earlier in the game. The player's character deals less damage as well.
 * Lesser demons and bosses health: 100%
 * Lesser demons and bosses damage: 200%


 * Dante Must Die - This difficulty appears once you have beaten Hard with both Dante and Lucia. Enemies generally take less damage and can now activate their Devil Trigger. Bosses have more effective attacks, are more aggressive and deal more damage.
 * Lesser demons and bosses health: 200%
 * Lesser demons and bosses damage: 200%


 * Lucia Must Die - Lucia Must Die is essentially the same as Dante Must Die except with Lucia as the character.
 * Lesser demons and bosses health: 200%
 * Lesser demons and bosses damage: 200%

Devil May Cry 3
Devil May Cry 3 is said to be the most difficult game in the series, and the original release is often regarded as one of the most difficult games of all time. Enemies and Bosses generally get tougher while the player gets weaker as the difficulty increases.


 * Easy - Easy mode is not available at the beginning. It is unlocked by dying at least 3 times in Normal mode. Enemies in this mode have less health and generally deal less damage. Bosses have less health and are more docile. Easy also has Automatic Mode a mode for players which allows them to perform complex combos by just repeatedly pressing a button without regard to timing.
 * Lesser demons and bosses health: 90%
 * Lesser demons and bosses damage: 90%


 * Normal - The default mode of the game. Enemies have more health. Bosses are tough and attack frequently. The player also takes more damage.
 * Lesser demons and bosses health: 100%
 * Lesser demons and bosses damage: 100%


 * Hard - Unlocked by beating Normal. Enemies have even more health and deal more damage. Bosses attack more frequently.
 * Lesser demons and bosses health: 175%
 * Lesser demons and bosses damage: 175%


 * Very Hard - This difficulty is only available in the Special Edition version of the game. It is unlocked by beating the game on Hard. Bosses attack even more frequently. The player deals less damage and takes more damage from enemies.
 * Lesser demons and bosses health: 200%
 * Lesser demons and bosses damage: 200%


 * Dante Must Die - This difficulty is unlocked by beating the game on Hard. Enemies are hostile and deal more damage. They also have access to Devil Trigger and activates it after a certain period of time.
 * Lesser demons and bosses health: 250%
 * Lesser demons and bosses damage: 250%


 * Vergil Must Die - Vergil Must Die is basically the same as Dante Must Die with the exception being that you play as Vergil in this mode. Vergil Must Die is only available in the Special Edition version of the game.


 * Heaven Or Hell - New to the series is the Heaven Or Hell mode. It is unlocked by beating the game on Dante Must Die. In this mode, all Enemies and Bosses die in one attack. However, the player also dies in one attack.

Devil May Cry 4
With each rise in difficulty, enemies and bosses generally get tougher and the player gets weaker. There are 6 modes for the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions of the game with an additional mode for the PC version.


 * Human - One of the default difficulty modes of the game. Enemies have less health, deal less damage and are quite docile. Bosses take more damage. The player deals more damage and takes less. This is equivalent of the Easy difficulty. Clearing all the missions on this difficulty unlocks the special artwork "The Two Heroes," and 29 character images for viewing in the Gallery.
 * Lesser demons and bosses health: 90%
 * Lesser demons and bosses damage: 90%


 * Devil Hunter - One of the default difficulty modes of the game. This is essentially the Normal difficulty. Clearing all the missions on this difficulty unlocks the Bloody Palace, Son of Sparda difficulty, and the special artwork "The Cast".
 * Lesser demons and bosses health: 100%
 * Lesser demons and bosses damage: 100%


 * Son Of Sparda - This difficulty mode is the equivalent of Hard. It is unlocked by beating the game on Devil Hunter. Enemies have more health, are more hostile, deal more damage and tougher enemies appear early on. The player deals less damage and takes more. Some of Nero's levels have more complicated paths. Clearing all the missions on this difficulty unlocks Dante Must Die mode, Heaven or Hell mode, and the special artwork "The Demons" and 12 additional pieces for viewing in the Gallery.
 * Lesser demons and bosses health: 175%
 * Lesser demons and bosses damage: 175%


 * Dante Must Die - This difficulty is unlocked by beating Son Of Sparda mode. Enemies get tougher and bosses utilize more attacks. Enemies also now have Devil Trigger and frequently use it. Clearing all missions on this difficulty unlocks Hell and Hell mode, the special artwork "Demon Invasion", and the Super costumes for Dante and Nero.
 * Lesser demons and bosses health: 225%
 * Lesser demons and bosses damage: 225%


 * Heaven Or Hell - Unlocked by beating Son Of Sparda mode. Enemies and bosses all die in one attack. The player also dies in one attack. However, the player is given 3~4 lives to use whenever he dies. Clearing all missions on this difficulty unlocks the special artwork "The Ladies of Devil May Cry."


 * Hell And Hell - Unlocked by beating Dante Must Die. The player dies in one attack, but is given 3 gold orbs to utilize whenever he dies. Enemies and bosses in this mode do not die in one attack, and adopt their difficulty from the Dante Must Die mode. Clearing all missions on this difficulty unlocks the special artwork "Light from the Demon Blade".


 * Legendary Dark Knight - This difficulty is only available in the PC version of the game. It is unlocked by beating the game on Human or Devil Hunter mode. It is similar to Son Of Sparda mode, but with more enemies spawning than before. In this mode, it is capable of spawning about 20~30 Scarecrows in a single room, making this mode a little bit harder than Son Of Sparda.


 * Automatic Mode - Although not listed as a Difficulty Mode in the Mission Menu, it is equivalent to the Easy-Automatic Mode. This mode can be activated depending on the player's choice on the New Game section.